A Question about Older Voters

[Ohiogal]

It's been my observation, albeit anecdotal, that most older people in my area (say, over 50) are all Trump supporters.

It's also been proven through studies that Trump supporters are mostly composed of the older generations.

Now, I'm wondering.... WHY would any older person vote Republican? Republicans want to screw with your Medicare and Social Security ..... do away with unions that provide good retirement pensions .... in general they want to make life for the over 50 crowd more miserable, making health insurance unaffordable, letting banks have their way with your meager savings, and many other things that are really detrimental to us older folks. (I'm 61)

I thought we were the generation of "Power to the People!" and "Make Love, Not War!"

What happened?

[TheMastersNemesis]

1. They Are Blinded By Racism, Religious Fanaticism, Socialism Phobia And Gun Mania.

The senior population is blinded by the era they grew up and lived in.

[snowybirdie]

5. Not true

The children of the 60s! We're still out there

[TheMastersNemesis]

43. The GOP Has Won A Lot Of Seniors & I Believe Trump Won The Senior Vote.

And I believe Romney, & McCain won a lot of the senior vote as well. Yes a lot of seniors from the 60's voted Democratic, but not enough. I personally know a lot of seniors who are pro GOP and Trump.

[samnsara]

59. anyone calls me an older voter gets smashed over the head with my bong!

[Timewas]

19. Wow

just plain fucking WOW (from an elderly white male who actually can see pretty fucking well)

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. I'm an old liberal and all my friends are old liberals, so I couldn't say.

But it is true that the Fox "News" demographic is also older people. The Venn diagram of old Trump voters and old Fox watchers is probably a 100% overlap. Maybe it takes 30 years of indoctrination by hate radio and Fox to suck people's brains out of their heads and turn them into fearful, racist, science-denying idiots, so it figures most of them would be old.

[Ohiogal]

4. I have evolved

The older I get, the more liberal I seem to become. And I never really was anything near conservative to begin with.

They say that usually it's the opposite. (Older people tend to get more conservative.)

I know a few liberals my age, (mostly friends I've stayed in touch with from college), but most of my peers seem to be right wingers. At times I'm astounded by the racism in my generation. And, if you're white and the same age as they are, they just assume you are of the same mind.

Guess I'm just an old hippie???

[davekriss]

44. Ive stayed very liberal all my life

My politicalcompass dot org scores are always around -9/-9. I cannot comprehend the modern Republican mind.

[RKP5637]

56. When I was young, I figured the racists and all of my era would die off. Here I am now older, and

they're still around. WTF happened to the 60's.

[snowybirdie]

3. Don't fall for generalzations

My circle of friends are all lifelong Democrats who abhor tRump and his policies. We have been frustrated in recent years when Republican forces seem to be winning in the political arena. My reason is I want my grandchildren to have better opportunities than we had. At this point it looks bleak, but we'll keep hope alive!

[hlthe2b]

9. EXACTLY... Remember the RW pro-war Republicans that anti-war Baby Boomers FOUGHT

were likewise generally older white men. But, that doesn't given license to assume about ALL the WWII generation nor today's aging baby boomers. The first gave us Kennedy. The second, Obama.

[Jane Austin]

48. Me, too!

Thanks for speaking for me.

[mountain grammy]

6. I'm 70..my friends are anti trump, anti GOP

because they're not ignorant racists.

[bluestarone]

20. this i'm 70 and proud of it!! i've been a Dem all my life!! (maybe 25 on)

MY OPINION ONLY is the richer the more likely a tRump supporters (not everyone tho) just the GREEDY RICH! i'm not sure where the cut off is tho. If a person doesn't care about healthcare, other people, or the planet, That's where the problem begins i guess. I would almost bet most adults born in the 40's 50's 60's are most likely Dems. slowly over the years some were brainwashed i guess. The rich people saying to WIN you need to get 50% of the people to fight the other 50%! That's kinda where we are at today! to add i feel that RELIGION has come into play BIG TIME!! I'm religious BUT NOT the type that these RIGHT WING IDIOTS!!!!! TO EACH HIS OWN I SAY! I will NEVER IMPOSE MY BELIEFS ON OTHERS!

[True_Blue]

36. I'm 60 and my friends hate the GOP too.

Ignorant racists come in all ages. When I was young I used to think that all racists would eventually die of old age, but that hasn't happened.

[MineralMan]

7. Well, DU is full of older voters who aren't what you describe.

What of them? What of me?

Like every generation, we're not uniform. We never were, even back in the 60s. Really.

But, the older people you're talking to here don't fit your description.

I'm 72 years old, by the way.

[hlthe2b]

10. +++

[Ohiogal]

11. I'm just saying

that in MY AREA the older folks are mostly Trump supporters. I realize that there are other areas of the country that tend to be more liberal.

When I'm in a place where you can't help but overhear people talking (stores, restaurants, in the locker room at the gym) I hear them all praising Trump. Last summer the Trump yard signs around here were abundant, you scarcely saw a Hillary sign.

And, if you are older, and white, they assume you agree with them, and are very happy to engage you into a conversation of how great Trump is and God Bless the USA and those evil football players who kneel should all be fired for disrespecting our flag, etc, etc.

I'm just wondering out loud what happened to all the hippies in the world.

I am grateful every day to hear the opinions and beliefs of all you DUers, which raise my hopes that we can eventually drive out these deplorables running things in Washington with our united strength!

[MineralMan]

26. All those old hippies are still here, or at least most of them.

Some have died, of course. The thing is, there weren't as many of them as you might think there were. They were a small minority of people of that age at that time. They were visible, noisy, untidy, and argumentative. So, people noticed them. But, they were far from a majority, even of people in the same generation.

You talk about the people you encounter in your area. My experience is just the opposite. The people I see aren't like that at all. We see only a small subset of people. I have heard nobody praising Trump in person. Not one. I hang out with a different group, I guess, and live in another place, I suppose.

Beyond age, there is nothing true you can say about old people in general. The old hippies are still old hippies. They're around, but they're no longer visibly different, noisy, untidy or argumentative, necessarily. I know number of them. They're politically active. They speak and write and engage in political activism, but more quietly and less visibly.

Many are right here on DU and on other discussion areas. They post on Facebook, Twitter, etc., too, countering idiocy when it makes sense to do that.

Some of them are in public office, elected to sit in those seats. Others are in government employment. They're everywhere, and all around you. You're just not seeing them.

[Ohiogal]

33. You're probably right

that there just weren't as many as I thought there were.

But, when I was young, I never even knew any "Young Republican" types, although I knew there probably were some somewhere.

[MineralMan]

37. There were lots of "young Republicans."

We just didn't hang out with them.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

8. Trim that broad brush, please.

Mid-60s Hillary bot here.

My wife's first comment on hearing the results of 2016, "No! That thing can't be going to the Whitehouse!" I shamelessly appropriated her terminology as my own. That thing is not the president; it's a usurper.

Beware of the dogma.
Peace out.

[Ohiogal]

12. Thank you, Prog

Your comment and Trump terminology made my day! "That Thing" ....lol May I borrow it?

Welcome to DU, and I love your name!

BTW, my first reaction to hearing that The Thing won the election .... I cried.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

24. It may be human -- awaiting evidence

Thanks for the welcome!

Been reading a while and then decided to join in -- Democrats are scarce where I live and progressives even scarcer. Age doesn't seem to be a determining factor, but all my neighbors feed at the Fox trough. I don't know how to break through the fog of propaganda.

I'm in Kentucky and take no blame for Rich Mitch McTurtle nor Rand Anti-vaxxer Paul.

[blogslut]

13. Older voters are the largest group of consistent voters.

I bet you'll find that more older people voted for Ms. Clinton than did other age groupings.

[LeftInTX]

27. Winner, winner chicken dinner

"Hands off my Medicare!!" was a rallying cry used by the right. It got seniors all worked up over the ACA.

[Greybnk48]

14. Both of the Trump voters I know are uneducated.

Both seniors with no college. Real dumb shits that watch Faux "news." All of my other friends are college grads, or have some college, and are LIBERALS. Real 60's and 70's LIBERALS!

ALL of them vote, they ALL want universal healthcare, daycare, and $15 and hour pay. They are ALL environmentally aware and educated and involved in fighting for the environment.

We ALL support and fought for Roe vs Wade. Mainly because we're all educated about anatomy and fetal development. We know that a fetus is not, and cannot be a person without the abilities of a person. Education.

They are ALL active LIFELONG feminists, including the men, and are happy that a new wave has started that actually might move women's rights farther up the ladder.

We are all well informed.

How's that for a generalization? And unlike the OP, mostly accurate too.

[Hermit-The-Prog]

25. nearly 8 of 10 trumpanzees in my area

The OP qualified her observation as "anecdotal". Perhaps she lives in a pocket similar to the one I'm in. I took the post to be a plea for encouraging data. It's hard to keep your eye on the prize when surrounded by the howler monkey brigade. That's especially true when you've been taught to respect elders.

[Mariana]

15. I can tell you what my parents believe about SS and Medicare.

They don't believe it will ever be taken away from them. If anything is done, they believe it will only affect younger people who aren't currently drawing benefits. I imagine many, many older people believe that as well.

[scarletlib]

79. I am 68 and I do care.

My 75 year old husband and I always vote Democratic.
I have two comments about the older people voting for Trump. First if you break down the ages of those voters I believe you would find that the vast majority are in the Greatest Generation cohort (those still alive) and the rest are the so--called Silent Generation. Those born from approximately 1925 to 1945. Ironically these 2 generations are the ones who have benefited the most from generous government benefits: GI Bill, Soc. Sec., Medicare, etc. Many have pensions from when they retired years ago when pensions from businesses were still common. They got theirs and they live in their own little world and don't think about others.
Second: These people watch Fox News.

[llmart]

83. I'm 69 and agree with your assessment...

I know only four trump voters and what I know of all four is that not one of them has anything above a high school diploma. All of my other friends/family/acquaintances/coworkers in my age group voted for Hillary. Though I don't know their entire voting history, I know mine and I've always voted for Democrats!

In my county the ones who were most likely to vote for trump were the uneducated, pickup truck driving youngish white men and their equally uneducated white female partners who are mad at the world because they weren't handed a six-figure job right after high school. They're the ones who feel entitled.

[Mariana]

85. In the country as a whole, though, it was the opposite.

Counting age alone, the majority of voters over 65 voted for Trump. The majority of young voters went for Clinton.

[Mariana]

84. My parents are Silents, 1938 and 1942.

My dad is a Fox News addict for sure, my mom less so but because that's what's on all the time at the house, that's all the "news" she hears about. My dad was CWA. You described them perfectly.

[dalton99a]

16. Exit poll data:

[Ohiogal]

38. Thank you, Dalton.

[wishstar]

17. The ones I know take their benefits for granted, don't like taxes going to "undeserving" others

My immediate neighborhood is an oasis of empathetic Democrats, both young and old. However, my spouse and I are extremely discouraged that so many of our 62 and older relatives and friends believe that while they deserve their government benefits and don't believe their benefits are threatened by Repubs, they have a "I've got mine, screw you" mentality with a fierce resentment of immigrants and people of color or slackers that think are unfairly taking jobs and getting government benefits. They just don't seem to care that younger generations will have to work longer and struggle harder for a comfortable life and healthcare benefits if government benefits are slashed. Instead they blame union pay demands and Democratic regulations for companies closing or leaving the US, rather than blaming corporate greed. For them, taxes are the supreme evil. The ones I know are ALL Fox news and/or rightwing radio addicts and/or are influenced by conservative religion.

It is shocking that such a high percentage of whites are Trump and rightwing supporters. Thankfully, demographics are changing and we have to hope that internet and social media rightwing propaganda is countered so that it does not infect younger folks the way Fox and rightwing radio have brainwashed older Americans.

[Ohiogal]

18. I agree with all that you said wishstar

your observations about MANY (not ALL) older voters is spot on.

I seem to be taking a bashing for generalizing too much here which was not my intent at all.

[sinkingfeeling]

40. "Taxes are bad" is the conservative religion.

[DURHAM D]

21. They vote Republican out of ignorance.

They still get their news from radio and network tv. The reason they leave their tv on a local station is so they can follow the weather.

They are also the generation that gets a daily newspaper delivered to their front porch. A typical Sunday paper has three "opinion" pieces. The opinions are from - Charles Krauthammer Cal Thomas, and Pat Buchanan.

Also, their favorite President was a Midwesterner named Eisenhower. He was a Republican. They still think that Republicans in DC have the same moral standards as Ike.

They still hate FDR because their grandparents actually had to accept help from the Federal government during the depression and they are in complete denial about the Farm Bill being a socialist program. They are shocked when they are told that the Food Stamp Program is in the United States Department of Agriculture and not HHS. The USDA is their nanny so they will call you a big fat liar when informed of this.

The strange thing is that they will write a check in a heartbeat to a local church or agency that is helping feed families in need. Two weeks ago I was chatting with a friend about a local soup kitchen and their expanding services. A gentleman I did not know was nearby and listening to our conversation. He approached and asked me a few questions about the entity. He asked me if he gave me a check I could take it to the agency. I said of course. He got out his checkbook and started writing. I expected him to hand we a check for $25. He handed me a check for $1,000.

iows - Their vote is not connected to their heart.

[DrDan]

29. wow

[delisen]

22. Propaganda. Older disproportionately watch cable news

and listen to talk radio.

The Democratic Party has not been able to counter the propaganda.

Anecdotal example: I interviewed a couple with heath problems in their home after the election. The television stayed on. It was turned to Fox News. The woman had almost always voted Democratic, the man was WWII Marine-his past voting was mixed.

They both told me that Hillary Clinton had used her foundation to buy Chelsea Clinton's wedding dress-and that it was just a terrible thing to do. They did sound uneasy about Donald Trump's win but said it looked as though he was surrounding himself with good people.

Their adult children were present: they are blue collar workers. They also seemed uneasy about Trump-but talked about how tough it was for families to afford Obamacare health insurance and how high private healthcare premiums were also. -it was too expensive.

Lots of irony in the above.

The problem I see is not a particular candidates messaging. We need a platform of support that is strong enough to break through the propaganda on an ongoing basis and that can do battle in the propaganda war.

What form might it take? It might be different in different states-but it needs to replicate what the old time party was able to do

[Cirque du So-What]

23. It is frustrating

I'm 63, white male, and I've never voted for a repug in my life. I've also had numerous encounters with members of my demographic who assume that everyone else who looks like them feel the same regressive way about various & sundry issues. When I start laying truth-bombs on them, they look at me like I just sprouted a third arm from my forehead. I'm sure that I'm not alone in my progressive views; IMO we're more reticent about revealing our views to strangers than our conservatroid counterparts. We need to become more forthcoming, however, during these random encounters.

[DrDan]

28. you could probably ask a very similar question of female voters - why would any vote R?

They want to screw with your rights, etc etc etc - in general they want to make life for females more miserable . . . and so many things that are really detrimental to females.

What happened?

[Akacia]

30. I have not found that to be true but....

I am fortunate to live in a blue State and do not associate with Republicans! I am 62 and still hope for change for my grand kids and great grand kids. These kind of posts also cause me much dismay since Hillary did win the popular vote!!! Why is this so often overlooked?

[SWBTATTReg]

31. Well, at first I was mad at OP for jumping to a conclusion that a majority of tRUMP voters ...

are older, and one guy in OP chain did provide charts of the demographics of tRUMP supporters (thanks by the way!) showing this to be true.

However, I think more than anything, age is not just the only criteria. You can break it down more so by geographical/region, and income too (I'm sure that there are other factors too).

I then remembered something my Mom said to me, that one reason that they moved to the country (rural Missouri) is because they could build their spanking brand new 2,500 sq. foot dream home there and live for a couple of hundred dollars a month, per my Dad telling my Mom!!!

At the time, we were talking about bills (utility, gasoline, etc.) and she brought this up, and I was shocked. I told her that surely she didn't believe this nonsense and that prices are not regional anymore, it's national more than likely, etc. By the way, they can't afford all of their health insurance either (just one of the two policies), so my Mom self-insures roughly $1,100 a month, an insane amount for insurance. My dad still voted rabidly repug thought, and one good note, Mom now votes democratic. It's heartbreaking that these guys/gals are finding out the tough truth in their twilight years...

[LeftInTX]

32. Wealthier people are the most consistent voters in all age groups

Wealthier people tend to vote Republican.

Younger people tend to be the least wealthy and also least likely to vote.

[Iggo]

34. Nope.

Not doing this.

[LuckyCharms]

35. I tend to see this as well.

It is prevalent in my extended family (Aunts, Uncles, older cousins). I don't know what makes them like this.

[raging moderate]

39. Our generation was sharply divided.

There was significant pressure to choose one way or the other. I recall that about half of us tended to be politically right-wing little showoffs, girls with those stiffly hairsprayed helmet-type hairdos and nylon/heels, with crewcuts and ironed shirts/ties on the boys. They tended to be over-reinforced for this, handed all the best jobs and constantly praised by supervisors and other older adults. It was assumed that they would NEVER be the employees who made mistakes or got drunk or secretly stole cookies (even though they frequently were). This bunch was always somewhat racist and snobbish. Kids who were unable to achieve that bandbox Barbie/Ken look were treated like second-class. I know I drifted toward the hippie/liberal crowd because they were the ones who accepted me as I was, overlooking my ramshackle appearance. When that rogue bunch of US soldiers massacred that village at My Lai, I was shocked at the callous reaction of the junior right-wingers. They were outraged at the idea that any US military personnel might be held accountable for any massacre. And this was in the city of Chicago, Illinois.

[bluestarone]

41. this i'm 70 and proud of it!! i've been a Dem all my life!! (maybe 25 on)

MY OPINION ONLY is the richer the more likely a tRump supporters (not everyone tho) just the GREEDY RICH! i'm not sure where the cut off is tho. If a person doesn't care about healthcare, other people, or the planet, That's where the problem begins i guess. I would almost bet most adults born in the 40's 50's 60's are most likely Dems. slowly over the years some were brainwashed i guess. The rich people saying to WIN you need to get 50% of the people to fight the other 50%! That's kinda where we are at today! to add i feel that RELIGION has come into play BIG TIME!! I'm religious BUT NOT the type that these RIGHT WING IDIOTS!!!!! TO EACH HIS OWN I SAY! I will NEVER IMPOSE MY BELIEFS ON OTHERS Post 20 was supposed to be to you sry

[Meowmee]

42. My county voted

55% for 🍊💩 43% hrc, I’m not sure about the rest. It has always been more right wing, more fascist, more racist and bigoted here and I’ve always known this could happen. I’m not sure how it breaks down age wise. My whole family are Dems and hrc supporters and voters. One adjacent neighbor who is in her 80’s is a dem and hrc voter. I’m not sure about the rest of the neighborhood except for the other adjacent neighbor(50’s) who I’m pretty sure voted 🍊💩, they are crazy anti abortion types- we don’t communicate with them anymore for many reasons, one being the man threatened to beat up my elderly father at one point. I know of one other neighbor an older couple in their 90’s who have since passed, who were crazy Fox News 🍊💩 poop supporters. I helped their caretaker trap some free roaming cats at their property. When I went over there she had Fux News on all the time.

My father encountered a demonstration of older men 2-3 years ago who had signs saying don’t let the gov get their hands on my Medicare 😳😹 he was trying to explain to them that Medicare is a gov program. One of my students(20’s) told me after the election that she and here sister were terrified and crying about the Russia revelations coming out. She was a fux news watcher - she mentioned that.

[sinkingfeeling]

45. I live in a deep red state, so I find Trump supporters everywhere, from grade

school to senior citizens.
I'm almost 70 and have found myself getting more and more liberal/socialist as I age. I think I'm in the top 20%, based on my assets, not income. I worked 40 plus years in corporate America. When I began in the 1970s, most of my coworkers were liberal Democrats, opposed to Nam.
As we all went up that corporate ladder, more became driven by greed and trying to hide money from the IRS. Add to this the rantings of Ronnie Reagan and the birth of Faux News, talk FM radio pundits, and the cable news echo chamber, and you get an older white demographic that votes GOP.

P.S. Born and raised in central Ohio farm country. Been gone since 1977.

[Freddie]

46. Every single Trump voter I know

Is a fetus worshipper. It’s their ONLY issue. They are blinded to anything else. A candidate could start WWIII and drown puppies on TV but if he was “pro-life” they’d vote for him. I wish there was a way to break through to those people but it’s a lost cause.

[bluestarone]

47. this is true

[Ohiogal]

49. There DO seem to be a lot of "one issue" voters out there

And that's often the issue they focus on.

[Cha]

76. I figured that.. No Choice! they vote

against themselves just to make sure they're voting No Choice.

[Kirk Lover]

50. Aren't they the people sitting around watching Faux? n/t

[mcar]

51. I'm 59 and I vote Democratic

Always.

I live in one of the oldest counties in FL, age wise and most of those voters are Tea Party Trump Humpers.

However, I have recently helped to form a chapter of the Democratic Women's Club of Florida here. In 4 months, we have 35 members, nearly all women older than me. That may not seem like a lot, but for here, it's huge.

And we are fired up!

[Awsi Dooger]

52. The so-called Silent Generation is more white, more religious and therefore more Republican

I saved this Pew link a few years ago. It is the best breakdown I've seen. The Silent Generation represents Americans born between 1928 and 1945. That group married earlier, is 78% white, very religious, and everybody who turned 18 years old during the Eisenhower administration is a member of the Silent Generation.

I've mentioned many times that presidential approval rating at the time a person turns 18 years old is a great predictor of ideology and partisan alignment. Eisenhower's average approval rating was 65% during his two terms as measured by Gallup, and it was barely below 70% during his first term. Americans who came of age during the '50s were simply more predisposed to think like Republicans. They have carried it throughout their lives and vote dependably.

For some reason beginning about 25 years ago the gap started to widen regarding senior citizens voting at higher rate than those in their 40s and 50s. Most of the trends have favored Democrats in the past decade or so but that trend tilts in the other direction.

Of course, the reality is that fewer members of the Silent Generation will be alive in 2020 than 2016, and so forth.

There is a really great table low in this link that is titled, "2014 Partisan Advantages by Year of Birth." Note that everything is left of center all the way down to about 1945. That table is perhaps the best depiction I've ever seen of that 18 year old reality. You'll see the quick sharp leftward shift from people born in that year compared to ones born just a few years earlier. Those people were turning 18 under JFK and not Eisenhower.

Also note the rightward shift more toward balanced among people born in the late '50s through mid '60s. Those people turned 18 when Carter was unpopular, or when Reagan was popular.

Links like this are the reason I always rely on big picture foundational realities and not obsession over the latest trivial daily variable. That type of thing can only serve to distract and confuse, yet the cable news programs know nothing else.

http://www.people-press.org/2015/09/03/the-whys-and-hows-of-generations-research/

[elleng]

53. I suspect the issue is with 'your area,'

as this is NOT true in MY area.

[JPPaverage]

54. I'm 60

I have never voted for any republican in my life. And I tried hard to warn people, both young and old, about trump. My mom is 84 and my dad is 87. They've never voted republican either, at least since I've been alive. So I suppose the answer to your question may be racism, the fact that many older white voters think that the politicians just aren't looking out for them. And quite frankly, I sometimes wonder if any politicians are looking out for us, the older working stiffs.

[gopiscrap]

55. everyone in my social circle (which is very big)

voted against trump

[retread]

57. When they were 18-30 in 1972, they voted 52% for Nixon. The demographic impacted

by Vietnam voted for the warmonger.

[life long demo]

58. I could not agree with you more

I never understood why anyone making under 250K would vote for a republican to begin with. I grew up pro union, although I was never in one, pro civil rights, I'm a white woman, pro elderly rights, although I wasn't always old, Pro environment, pro animal rights, pro children rights. God I can't remember all the things I've believed in and fought for all my life. And I'm 75 this month, and I have never and would never vote for a gd republican. But this classless bunch of rethugs in DC is the worse I have ever seen. God bless us

[trueblue2007]

60. older people ??? I AM 67 YEARS OLD AND A VERY VERY VERY LIBERAL DEMOCRAT

I think "your observation, albeit anecdotal" is TOTALLY WRONG !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[marybourg]

61. Many people who were adults

( people married and settled down young in that era) during the 60's felt threatened by the social changes. This is the final lash of the backlash.

[rickford66]

62. I've confronted a few lately about Medicare and Social Security.

They look sort of blank and say "They wouldn't do that'" I say that's what they run on. And they say "They wouldn't do that." Go figure.

[Ohiogal]

63. I've talked to a few

On Medicaid ...in a cancer support group ...all ages ....

When you say they could lose their Medicaid, they say the same thing .... "They wouldn't do that!"

[Me.]

64. And I've Heard That Millenials Don't Vote

I wonder why?

[CozyMystery]

80. I have 4 kids who are Millenials

They are 23 and 22 (triplets are 23).

One of them wasn't going to bother voting because he figured it wouldn't matter -- obviously, Mrs. Clinton was going to win.

He changed his mind at the last minute, and went with the rest of the family to vote for her.

Maybe the Democratic Party's slogan should be "Your Vote DOES Count!" I know several people (over 60) who didn't vote because they figured T would lose bigly. I think it is likely a lot of young people didn't vote because they figured Mrs. Clinton was a shoo-in. And some of them didn't vote because they were Bernie supporters (so was I, originally).

[Fresh_Start]

65. Nostalgia for the good olds days

that being said, I'm in a liberal part of california...and the seniors I know are all liberal...with one selfish exception.

[raven mad]

66. Are you kidding?

I'm 63, spouse 65............. and even the thought of voting R makes me puke.

[McCamy Taylor]

67. Are we being divided (and conquered) into old and young, now?

[raccoon]

68. Older voter here. I don't get that either but if you figure it out let me know. NT

[milestogo]

69. Your observation must be based on a pretty limited sample.

[TomSlick]

70. "Older people in my area (say, over 50)?"

I guess it's off the old folks home for me. I hope someone will give this old guy a ride to the polls on election day. If so, I will do what I have always done - vote a straight Democratic line.

[Corgigal]

71. Like I told my Puerto Rican son in law

Our "kind" finally got close to the top of the food chain, so they want to pretend this isn't America. Loved it 100 years ago, now what? We're gonna be the minority soon, some should be scared. They know how they treated others.

[Horse with no Name]

72. In my area it is the older ones....like over 65

they feel like they have their benefits..nobody would dare take them away.
They really just don't care if anyone else gets theirs.

[Hamlette]

73. Older voters tend to be "conservative" which means, sort of,no change.

When some people get older, they are resistant to change. Technology is a bit confusing (I can use it, but I can't fix it . . . I call my son or do a work around). The familiar is more comfortable. The GOP, as conservatives, have a reputation of being against change.

I also think we olds think about our savings and our savings are not in banks. They are in stocks. Big or fast changes can impact the market, they fear. I know the market was better under Clinton than any other prez of my lifetime and Obama pulled us out of the biggest hole ever but I also know that the majority of financial planners are also conservative and advise us olds to fear change (Democrats). Same with bankers.

The thing I fear about the next election is people will credit Trump with the 35% increase in their 401s since he was elected. Younger people don't have enough invested to really see it but if you are old, you see it and it means you will not become dependent on your kids which we all hate the thought of.

[burrowowl]

74. Like Hell!

This 71 year voter didn't vote for the POS, got shot at by campus police in 68 protesting the Vietnam war, lived in France over 20 years, came back to U$ of A and found myself protesting along the same routes as in the 60's, etc.
I think your observation is erroneous! When I came back I was organizing for Kucinich and 12 young people said they would come for a meet, I bought clipboards, etc. went to the meeting and no one showed up. Finally young people are waking up but boy have they been out of it, even when you explain about rebukes being against contraceptives, etc.

[marlakay]

75. My mom turning 90 this year

Voted for Hillary as did both of us in our 60’s both my daughters of which neither is a democrat both independent.

But then most of us live west coast except one daughter in Texas.

I think Trumps base makes us think that he has more people than he really does.

I personally think Hillary really won and machines were hacked.

[JI7]

77. the percentage of Whites is Higher Among Older Generations which is why they lean more republican

younger generations have more minorities which is why they tend to vote more democratic.

[pnwmom]

78. 83% of Seattle voters picked Hillary. The older voters chose her and they voted in large numbers.

I don't know why anyone would have chosen him, except for the 1%.

[Orrex]

81. During the 2016 campaign...

I noticed that a pro-Hillary sign on a lawn near my home here in western PA. I live in a low income Red county full of proud racists pretending to be Christians, so I was surprised to see someone coming out in support of Clinton.

I approached him one day to thank him for having the courage to declare his support in that way, since I have a legitimate fear that my property would be vandalized if I posted a sign.

He was in his 70s, very friendly, and he expressed his dismay that so many people he'd known for decades had gotten behind Trump, completely abandoning ideals and principles that they once supposedly cherished.

I can't speak for the demographic as a whole, but anecdotally (based on his account and my own observations) I'd say that your assessment is right on the money, at least in my town.

[LAS14]

82. Link? We "older voters" are flower children!! nt

[workinclasszero]

86. I'm a white male, working class wage slave, Jesus believing Christian, in my 60's

So I should be part of Shitler's hard core racist deplorable Putin loving base huh?

But I assure you I am not LOL

Trump and his whole traitor party and especially those heretic hypocritical evangelical right liars can go jump off a cliff as far as I'm concerned ASAP.

I admit I may be a rare case but I bet I'm not the only one of my type opposed to everything the evil republican party stands for.